Conn. man who tried to cut off his own arm when it became stuck in furnace has surgery

Conn. man who tried to cut off his arm has surgery

HARTFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut man who nearly succeeded in amputating his own arm after he became trapped for days while working on his furnace has undergone followup surgery.

Jonathan Metz got his arm caught Sunday in his furnace boiler. He was rescued Wednesday, a day after he used his own tools and cut through most of his left arm.

His father, Paul Metz of Southport, N.C., says his 31-year-old son has been in good spirits and looking forward to being fitted with a prosthetic arm.

Dr. Scott Ellner had said the operation at Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center involved removing more tissue that may not be healthy, and then grafting skin and muscle onto the remaining bone.

Doctors hope Metz, of West Hartford, can be released from the hospital sometime next week.